Benefits of Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol)

Vitamin D3 -  it is important to know that Vitamin D3 is a fat-soluble vitamin that works at a cellular level. It is naturally present in very few foods, added to other foods and termed 'fortified with Vitamin D', and also available as a dietary supplement. The most natural of all sources however, is when ultraviolet B (UVB) rays from the sun, striking the human skin and trigger vitamin D3 synthesis.  As well as being a vitamin, is actually a hormone as well, and possibly as old as progesterone. It has excellent anti-oxidative and autoimmune anti-inflammatory mechanisms. It positively affects the nervous system by stimulating neurotrophic factors, quenching oxidative hyperactivity and regulating autoimmune responses.

It is made by the action of UVB sunlight as it strikes the cholesterol covering our bare skin. Unfortunately with our habit of washing with soap, cholesterol is washed off, leaving very little with which to make Vitamin D3. This is why we all need to supplement.

One misguided piece of information is covering up and using excessive sunscreen whilst in the sun. This should only be applied after having been in the sun for about 15 - 30 minutes, dependent on skin type. 

For some of the best information on Vitamin D3, there is no better place to look than the Vitamin D Society and GrassrootsHealth websites. This is a comment made by Dr Cannell of the VDC.

 Get yourself tested, ZRT Labs and Birmingham Hospital are excellent for online testing labs.

What does Vitamin D3 do within our bodies?

Here are some of the reactions within our bodies:

• The kidney pathway sends the Calcitriol back into the blood where it is used to regulate calcium levels, reducing our risk of diseases such as rickets in children or osteomalacia or osteoporosis in adults.
• Vitamin D3 promotes calcium absorption in the gut and maintains adequate serum calcium and phosphate concentrations to enable normal mineralization of bone and to prevent hypocalcemic tetany.
• Without sufficient vitamin D3, bones can become thin, brittle, or misshapen. It is needed for bone growth and bone remodelling by osteoblasts and osteoclasts.
• The Calcitriol that is made in our tissues has more of an effect on gene expression in the cells, turning genes either on or off. Remember that genes are used to make proteins, and proteins are the machinery that control most of our bodily functions. Most cells in the human body contain the Vitamin D Receptor (VDR).
• Vitamin D3 is important to the muscles to enable them to move, and for the nerves to carry messages between the brain and every body part
• The immune system needs Vitamin D3 to fight off invading bacteria and viruses

To quote Dr. Greg Plotnikoff, Medical Director, Penny George Institute for Health and Healing, Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis:

"Because vitamin D3 is so cheap and so clearly reduces all-cause mortality, I can say this with great certainty: Vitamin D3 represents the single most cost-effective medical intervention in the United States."

Research has shown the correlation between poor Vitamin D3 function and all sorts of health conditions.

Do not get confused between Vitamin D2 (Ergocalciferol) versus Vitamin D3 (Cholecalciferol)

Not many people know there are two types of Vitamin D3, and they are NOT interchangeable! In fact, taking the wrong one could do you more harm than good. Drisdol is a synthetic form of Vitamin D2—made by irradiating fungus and plant matter—and is the form of Vitamin D3 typically prescribed by doctors. This is not the type produced by your body in response to the sun which is Vitamin D3. Make sure that the Vitamin D prescribed or bought at a pharmacy is Vitamin D3!

Vitamin D2 is found in a lot of our foods i.e. mushrooms. It is Vitamin D3 that we need, the same vitamin that we get from the sun. Certain foods contain it i.e. salmon but we need to eat huge quantities to get the amount that is needed!

Some Vitamin D3 supplements come with added vitamin A and/or calcium, do be careful. Vitamin A if taken in large quantities can become toxic and will block the uptake of Vitamin D3. Too much free calcium in the blood can result in calcified arteries, heart disease and depression. Please see references below.

VITAMIN A - please note that  cod liver oil (CLO) whilst a good form of vitamin D3,  or  any fish LIVER OIL, are high vitamin A. The excessive vitamin A it contains prevents Vitamin D3 from being absorbed and can become toxic - see here. Take beta-carotene if deficient in vitamin A. It is also believed that excessive vitamin A is responsible for Hair Loss.

Toxicity has always been a concern, but it appears to be another misguided piece of information, see here and here

Please take the time to view this amazing video by Dr Michael F Holick, it is long but well worth the view and explains so much.
Vitamin D3 comes in three forms:

• Cholecalciferol or D3 which is formed in the skin, this also comes as a supplement to take.
• Calcidiol (25-hydroxyVitamin D3) is a pre hormone made from cholecalciferol by the liver. When testing for Vitamin D3 this, and only this, is what should be tested for.
• Calcitriol (1,25-dihydroxyVitamin D3) is made from calcidiol principally by the kidneys, and is a most potent steroid hormone.

Finally a lack of Vitamin D3 reduces the benefits of progesterone, see here and here.

I highly recommend that you have your Vitamin D3 level tested so that you can address the situation should attention be needed.